Our Blogs

When you find yourself living with pain every minute of every hour of every day, just getting up in the morning can seem like too much to ask. When you find it hard to remember the last time you weren’t in pain, it’s not unusual for fear and depression to take hold and drag you into a downward spiral that makes the pain even worse. Even on good days, exercising can still be the last thing you feel like doing.

So fatigue or a sharp feeling of weariness is a general symptom experienced by people suffering from pain. It often reflects on their ability to complete all the different works that they must do to carry out the type of lifestyle that they have grown accustom to.

The challenge for the person who suffers from fatigue is how to manage it. It is necessary to rule out any underlying medical cause for the fatigue. Once it is diagnosed that your fatigue is due to the effects of pain, you are then in a position to try and manage it. The first thing towards the management of fatigue is mapping of it.

What is mapping of fatigue?

To understand and know your fatigue better you can try and map its nature. You can make a record in diary to do so. You can note down all the activities that can be done at one stretch. You need to be able to understand and predict your fatigue levels. So that Energy conservation and work simplification techniques can be used to minimize the effect of fatigue on day-to-day life. It may seem to be a little restrictive but in reality they are pretty much helpful in many ways.

Here are some useful coping strategies for you from Atlas Pain Care, Coimbatore.

Quality of sleep – If you get a few hours of deep sleep, it could be just as beneficial as getting several hours of light sleep. You should try to sleep where you will not be distracted and in a comfortable environment to promote a higher quality of sleep.

Drinking plenty of water – you need to drink approximately 1.9 liters of water every day. Drinking more than this figure would also be beneficial. Many people get fatigued from low levels of dehydration, and this problem can be avoided by getting plenty of water everyday.

Self-education in relation to fatigue – Be aware of the duration of fatigue and the time of day that it occurs. Where possible it is advisable to structure the day so that rests/napping can occur during periods of fatigue

Role balance – Delegate tasks to someone else wherever possible (role balance) to save your energy for things you need and want to do. It is better to take the help from others after prioritizing the activities that has to be done on your own. It will relax the involved muscle and reduce the efforts. Body learns to remain fatigue free.

Energy conservation – When energy is available, self pace tasks to conserve it. Try not to rush through tasks “in case the energy levels run out”. As stated before, this will exacerbate any sense of fatigue you may have.

Work simplification – Work simplification is all about completing a task in the most effective and easiest way by using the least amount of energy in the shortest possible time. It involves achieving a balance between work, rest and play.

Reducing activities – Plan the day around rest breaks, so there is adequate time to recover following activity. Ensure enough time for the completion of tasks so you don’t have to be rushed which will exacerbate a sense of fatigue. Before you begin an activity you should think about how important it is that you complete it. Priorities to do those activities that are most important to you.

Using special equipment – Adaptive equipment and modifying work and home environments can be beneficial as fatigue management strategies. These techniques may include use of mobility or self-care equipment to decrease effort with movement, improve body position with activities and provide effective compensation for activities of daily living.

A change of diet – Eating properly can also help to avoid fatigue. Many people make the mistake of eating food that is highly processed and which provides few nutrients. In order to avoid being fatigued, you should strive to eat plenty of fruits and vegetables as well as lean proteins. This type of diet will ensure that you have the proper nutrients and minerals in the body to promote energy production.

Exercise – There are many reasons why activity should reduce pain. The first has to do with endorphins. These are chemicals your body produces naturally during exercise, which have the same kind of effect as opiates like morphine and codeine. Endorphins actually block the perception of pain, and create a general feeling of wellness, both of which are invaluable to someone with chronic pain.

A second reason is that regular activity helps to improve both the ease with which we fall asleep, and the quality of our rest once we do. Pain, can become more or less difficult to deal with depending on our resource levels. Most sufferers experience difficulty sleeping when the pain is bad, which can prompt another downward spiral. Something that helps us sleep better, means more energy and resources, which in turn, allows us to cope better with the pain we experience.

A third is that exercise helps release tension. Tension, stress and frustration, as any sufferer of chronic pain will attest, increase pain levels. This means that anything that helps relax the body will also usually help reduce pain levels.

Finally, if the chronic pain occurs after an injury, targeted exercise can strengthen the muscles around the injury site, taking pressure off the injured tissue. Of course, the wrong kind of exercise can actually re-injure the area too, so it’s important to get professional guidance.

It is very important that any activity plan be started slowly and increased gradually.

Respect any signs of fatigue that you may experience (muscle soreness, weakness, tiredness, reduced quality of movement, jaw clenching, facial grimacing) and ensure that you stop an activity if it is causing your symptoms.

How can I modify tasks?

Household Tasks

Be aware of those times of day when there is energy. Plan to do demanding tasks during that time. Pace your activity and ensure you have adequate rests eg vacuum the house one room at a time, possibly over a couple of days. Make sure the tasks are done in a supported posture where possible. Eg. Sitting to do the ironing. Use adaptive equipment where needed eg long handled gardening tools for weeding, or a kitchen trolley to transport food. Do only those jobs that are important. Find alternative ways of completing other tasks. Delegate jobs to family members, order groceries over the telephone and have them home delivered, or pay to have someone clean your home.

Mobility

If walking is becoming increasingly difficult, consider the use of a mobility aid. If one is already in use you may have to consider a more supportive devise for long or frequent journeys. When planning a trip out perhaps do it during a quieter period of the day.

This will reduce the crowds; the amounts of time spent standing in queues, and increase the availability of benches for resting.

Work

At work, consider altering your start and finish times to accommodate fatigue levels at specific periods in the day eg: you could work in the evenings if you experience fatigue in the mornings. Ensure that your workstation is set up ergonomically as a poor posture and work practices can exacerbate fatigue.